[Keac241]

Hi guys, 
 
I have a beginners question, at the moment, I don't have any external DAC or amps so I'm just running my music from my laptop's minijack output and into my low-end akg K77 headphones. 
 
Now, whenever I plug the headphones into the laptop, with nothing playing, I can hear a very very faint hiss (white noise) sound. I would assume the majority of people wouldn't even hear it and if I listen to a typical song (rock/pop), it's not a bother. But if I'm listening to quiet classical music etc, it becomes annoying if I ever focus on it. (Which i do all the time)
 
My question is, what is the main cause of the hiss sound? Is it the laptop's internal DAC converter and/or the soundcard? The mini jack plug itself? Or maybe even the headphone?
 
Additional question: If i bought myself a decent Amp+DAC and plug it into a USB, will I still hear 'any' hiss sounds when nothing is playing?
 
Cheers,

 

[StudioSound]

It will be the laptop's soundcard that is the cause of this. Upgrading to a good external DAC/Amplifier should reduce or eliminate this noise. (my Benchmark DAC2 is totally silent)

If it's for use with a Laptop, something like the Audioquest Dragonfly would be a good choice.